Massive growth in the use of new communications technology, extra demands placed on budgets due to the recession, and a general rise in consciousness about supporting local businesses all conspire to offer many opportunities for anyone looking to earn extra income.

Ever since nearly every household had a telephone, people have been using this to help in this quest, and now that most also have at least one computer, that opens up all sorts of other potentially lucrative possibilities.

Even spare space in and around the home can be capitalised on, with renting it out when it isn’t needed another idea which is catching on. Anyone whose property has a designated parking space which isn’t needed could possibly explore this option, especially if they live near a busy railway station or airport, or there is a big sporting venue on the doorstep.

Another business area which is enjoying rapid growth involves offering people services in their home. Babysitting, house-sitting, dog-walking and even looking after animals while people are away have all developed into big business sectors in their own right. It’s important if thinking of doing this, though, to register with an established agency, as these usually carry public liability insurance which covers both them and you in the event of a mishap while things are being looked after.

With more and more people becoming aware of how their food is produced, and opting for locally-produced goods wherever available, growing fruit and vegetables on your own allotment, and then selling the results to family and friends is one of the fastest-growing ways of earning a little extra.

Fruit and vegetables never taste better than when they are freshly picked from your own garden, then prepared, cooked and served in a matter of hours. It does away with the growing worries about how far our food travels to reach us, and the amount of time it has spent in making that journey and sitting around in warehouses before being put on the shop shelf.

And in the same vein, someone who loves cookery and baking can also earn extra by selling their favourite items at a local fair or market. These are just a few ideas which might appeal, and they mean that there is no need for large amounts of time spent at home to be unproductive.

If you are in an appalling situation and frantically trying to figure out how to make money, the desperateness may sometimes make you think out of the box. The methods to earn extra money discussed below are some unusual ones which have bailed out people during dire circumstances and helped them make some quick money.Online real estate is an opportunity not many people have tapped. It involves buying and selling of domain names. If you are interested in trying your hand at it as a solution to your how to make money problem, there are a number of sites that are willing to support you in this attempt. All you need to do is buy a domain, add content on the respective site and then sell it. Online consulting is another practical option to make money. If you are good at a particular subject or an expert in your field, then you can offer your guidance and opinion to others online. This helps you earn substantial income. Sometimes, a lot of work gets outsourced online. These include programming jobs, graphic designing, transcription jobs, legal and other writing work. Most of these services are paid on an hourly basis.If you are willing to take some amount of risk, then you could try your hand at the stock market. By investing in the stocks and shares and carrying out day trading, you can create some amount of wealth online provided you know the right techniques or are willing to learn the tricks of the trade. There are day trading courses that train you to invest smartly and teach you how to make money over a short term. You could start with small amounts and once you are more confident, you can invest bigger amounts. However, take some time to acquaint yourself with the market before you start trading.A rare method to make money is to help entrepreneurs create their mailing lists online. One way of doing it would be to put up a registration form on their home page and link the same to an auto responder. By targeting every small business in the same vicinity as where you live, you could get started on your services and earn some quick money.If you really want to unearth how to make money, simply sit down and think uniquely. You would be surprised at the kind of ideas that you would come to your mind.You need to make use of your God given talents if you want to find a way of how to make money. This is faster than learning a new skill and then applying it.